Our 'from the vault' movie this week will take us back to 1958 as we take a closer look at The Inn of the Sixth Happiness. The movie was an adaptation of the book The Small Woman by Alan Burgess, which in turn was inspired by the true story of Gladys Aylward.
The Inn of the Sixth Happiness
Ingrid Bergman takes on the central role of Gladys Aylward, who is told that she is not qualified to be a missionary in China. Undeterred, she heads out to China anyway in the years leading up to the Second World War. Here she works in a remote village and become part of the community as the local foot inspector. But when the Japanese invade she leads a group of children on foot to the next province to save them from the Japanese troops.
The Inn of the Sixth Happiness is a movie that I have grown up with and it is a remarkable story of the unbreakable human spirit and a selfless woman who just wanted to help those less fortunate than herself.
Ingrid Bergman delivers a truly wonderful performance as Gladys, a woman who is determined to fulfil her missionary dream. Bergman is one of Hollywood's greatest actresses and she really captured the strength and the determination of Gladys as well as the vulnerability of a single woman being in a strange country.
This really is a slow-burner of a movie and director Mark Robson is in no hurry to rush through to the Japanese invasion. Instead, much like the Chinese community that she joins, we get to know Gladys and the life the she carves for herself in her new country. So, when danger finally strikes and Gladys makes the decision to get as many children out of the city as possible, we are 100% on her side and are rooting for her to succeed.
Gladys Aylward is a truly inspiration figure and Bergman portrays her selflessness so wonderfully in the film. It really is one of the finest performances of her acting career. While Bergman was nominated for Best Actress as the Baftas and the Golden Globes, she was overlooked when the Oscar nominations were announced.
However, it is not all about Bergman in The Inn of Sixth Happiness as Curd Jürgens is also fantastic as Lin Nan, the half Chinese captain who befriends Gladys before the war. They are two characters who may clash over the customs of the country, but their relationship is one of the film's most interesting as they slowly fall in love.
It is Gladys' task of leading 100 children through enemy -held terrain that is the most gripping part of the film. There is danger, uncertainty, and hard times at every turn and Robson creates a feel of unease and tension with every scene as Gladys pushes the children f forward.
The Inn of Sixth Happiness is an important war story of human strength and determination and Robson really has done a wonderful job. The movie is elevated by the central performance of Bergman, who never overplays the role of Gladys. Throw in some wonderful cinematography - the movie was filmed in North Wales and they really captured the beauty of that part of the world - and you have a classic movie that is as great a movie today as it was back in 1958.